and USING SCRIPT to effect it

 

In this tutorial I'm going to show you how easy it is to add a name onto an existing graphic or animation.. first I'll show you on the NON animated graphic.. usually in a .jpg format. If your wanting to take a graphic and make 'TAGS' for your friends or yourself., by personalizing them.. this is the best way to do it.. Just for one you wouldn't make a script.. but here is how you do if your making more than one.

  Makes is so much easier to record all the steps of putting the name on the existing graphic.

Drag and drop this arrow to keep up with where you are in tutorial

FYI....Have you ever noticed that when your doing tutorials, YOUR PSP workspace doesn't look like the persons that wrote the tutorial? And you can't find any of the tools its talking about using? Most people personalize their space. Like I did.. I have moved tools and effects that I use all the time down on my tool bar. I don't have the photo bar up there , never use that, some do, some don't.. In time you will learn to make your own personal PSP environment. I might write a tutorial on it.

 

   Open your .jpg *file extension* graphic and decide what colors you want to use for the text.. Have your Text tool selected on the tool bar.

On the right, the materials palette is there.. the top square is the OUTLINE color. or foreground color.. the bottom square is the FILL color or the background color. PSP keeps the last 10 colors you've used that you customized on the top 2 rows.. the bottom 2 rows are the default colors.. they stay the same all the time...Kind of standard colors. The two lil  squares of color that's over to the right of the foreground color shows your two working colors, click the lil two ended arrow and it changes the placement of the two colors..

Before you start recording your script you decide the colors and the font you want on  your graphic or TAG. Click your Text Tool oh yea we did that already LOL

On the tool options bar *which looks like this below* set your text tool create as button to floating. ALWAYS have the Anti-alias set on Smooth... I hate to see text on a graphic or TAG that's jagged around the edges.. it ruins the whole tag!!!!

In this sample capture below. it shows what the Script bar looks like. With your Text tool selected you click anywhere on your graphic and the Text entry box pops up. You then type your text in. Remember the text when you click APPLY , it should be floating with the lil marching ants around the text. Mine below don't look like it is. but it is. NEXT you click on the script bar the circle which records the script your going to make...

Once you get the text there where you want it by clicking on it, holding the left mouse button down and dragging it to where you want.. you click the Start Script Recording button. You always have to put the text there first before you record a script it cant do that for you...

Now you can either put an inner bevel and/or 3D shadow on your text. Of which I ALWAYS do.. Makes it look better if ya ask me.  I NEVER put just plain text on a graphic or tag.. yuck lol...

Here is the settings I used if you want to try them.. First I did an inner bevel then a 3D shadow. Those are both found if you go to Effects/3D effects

You need to do these and know which settings your going to use BEFORE you start recording the script!!.. Its not time to experiment when a script is recording, figure this out BEFORE.

 

If you want, once you get these settings set on your inner bevel and the drop shadow boxes.. click the SAVE button up there.. call them Norma's Preset.. I use these ALL the time.. You might too!!! *Do sometime while your not recording a script*

When your done with 'decorating' your text on that image. Don't forget to Go to selections/select none... so it will be recorded and the script can do that step and not your.. *saves your time*....then click the SAVE Script Recording button , name the script, I usually name it same as the tag name. Now next time you want to make a tag using that image for another friend.. You open it.. put your text on it.. have the text set on floating.. go up to the Script bar.. click the drop down list. and find that script you saved. then click the Run Selected Script button.. You CAN have the toggle script mode button on or off.. off it will go through all your steps with you not doing a thing.. but if you have it on.. it will stop at each action and you can TWEAK the settings if you wanted. I hardly use that feature. This button here is your edit script.. this is when you really get GOOD and can either write your own scripts or manipulate other peoples scripts to how you want them...I'm just learning how to do this my self..

 

Ok that's how your put your name on a tag and how you would record a script to make other tags for friends.. groups etc.. and save time..

This next section of this tutorial I will cover how to put your name on an animated tag or graphic.. its lil more involved but DOABLE.

 

Now in this part of the tutorial I'm going to show you how to add a name to an animated tag or graphic.

You have to open your Animation Shop *AS* and have your PSP open also.. you have to toggle back and forth to each. In your *AS* open the animated .gif. EDIT/select all or Ctrl + A on keyboard.. makes is easier to learn some of the key board shortcuts.  File/Export Frames/Paint Shop Pro... make sure you have ALL the frames selected or highlighted. it will auto open in PSP..

So when your in PSP you have your layers palette there and you will see all the 'frames' they're like layers. On the layer palette.. make sure the TOP frame is highlighted and ADD a new layer *this is the layer your going to put the NAME on*

Type your name * as this point if your making alot of this particular tag with different peoples names on it.. you would start recoding a script NOW*

  Apply all the effects at this point, the inner bevel and/or 3D shadow now if you want.. Selections/select none. SAVE the SCRIPT an name it..  Now depending on how many frames this .gif animation has.. you DUPLICATE the NAME layer to the same number. Here on mine.. the animation has just 2 layers.. so I duplicate the name layer once.. ending up with two name layers.... you click and drag ONE name layer on TOP of EACH frame layer.. This is tricky if the animation has alot of frames... I do a SCRIPT especially if I'm making alot of these tags for people.. don't want to have to go through all these steps EACH time.. ugh.. ok RECAPPING.. You put text on a new layer.. duplicated it same amount of frame that the graphic has.. drag EACH new name layer down on top of each frame later.. with this one I end up with 4 layers   well two frame layers 2 name layers *good habit is to name your added layers.. *

 To duplicate the name layer.....you right click on the name layer and click duplicate...

Select a name layer and right click/merge/merge down  that only merges that layer that's highlighted and the layer below it.. Now  right click on the next name layer and merge/merge down. You should have 2 layers or really they're frames

Stop HERE and hit the SAVE Script button it looks like a Disk.

click to close the graphic.. click NO on the first window it asks you if you want to save it.. you don't YET. When you click NO.. another box pops up it asks if you want to save the changes back to animation shop.. you click YES. it will take you auto back to *AS* You can check to see how your animation looks.. if it jumps or the name isn't on both or all frames then you did SOMETHING wrong!!! you go to EDIT/ UNDO update from PSP. start over . If all is ok.. then you SAVE AS..  in a .gif extension YOUR DONE.. to use that script.. you made for the animation.. *HOPE you saved it while in PSP before you closed the animation in there and went back to *AS* if you didn't you have to record it again. This is how you can make alot of this animated tag for lots of people fast

Hope this has helped you..

Have FUN

Toodles..